Abu Hamza and 4 terror suspects extradited from UK to US

London, Oct 6: Radical cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri and four other terror suspects convicted of serious offences including bomb making have been extradited from Great Britain to the US, British Home Secretary Theresa May said on Friday.

The five men were were taken from Long Lartin prison in Worcestershire under the guidance of Scottland Yard's extradition unit and were handed over to US marshals at Royal Air Force (RAF) base Mildenhall in Suffolk in eastern England. Hamza, along with fellow suspects Syed Tahla Ahsan, Khaled Al-Fawwaz, Adel Abdul Bary and Babar Ahmad were flown in two RAF planes. They will face trial in the USA. Extradition requests for these men were submitted between 1998-2006.

On Friday, the British High Court rejected a bail plea by Hamza, the 54-year-old former imam from Egypt. Two senior judges dismissed Hamza's plea to be allowed a stay of extradition on grounds of medical tests to assess whether he is fit enough to face the trial. Mary welcomed the decision, saying they felt happy that the terror suspects, who allegedly used every means possible to delay the extradition process, could be removed.

Hamza is expected to appear in the US District Court within 24 hours of touching the US soil. The ractual trial, however, could take between one to three years. He will be kept at the Metropolitan Correction Centre in New York.

Hamza is charged with 11 counts in the US, including taking 16 hostages in Yemen in 1998, promoting jihad in Afghanistan and also conspiring to establish a jehad training camp in the US. He had lost both his hands and an eye while fighting the Soviets in Afghanistan.